Pages

TC Lotempio Banner

ROCCO & Siblings!

I'm a handsome, albeit a tad tubby tuxedo cat who was adopted by my Human, Toni LoTempio, from the CLIFTON ANIMAL SHELTER in Clifton, NJ. To hear her tell it, it was love at frst sight! She saw my photo on the CAS website and thought I would be the perfect companion for her gold tabby, Maxx! No one expected me to strut out of my box and become the "boss" but that's exactly what happened the moment I lifted my paw!

The HUMAN enjoys writing - and I often help, lying in the den, purring inspiration - that is, when I am not egging her on to play with me and my "ballie" (I do so love a game of catch!) It wasnt' long before she noticed my suberb interviewing chops, and thus was born this blog! To date I have interviewed many popular authors, including Janet Evanovich, Mary Janice Davidson and Michelle Rowen, to name but a few! (My dream interview, Nora Roberts aka JD Robb, has not happened yet - but I have hope!)

One day the human's boss told her, "Why don't you write a book about your cat?" and thus was born NICK - although in the first version he talked (yes, talked!) unfortunately that didn't fly too well so now he's more of a silent partner to Nora Charles, sandwich shop owner, former investigative reporter and amateur sleuth - and thus were born the NICK AND NORA MYSTERIES, debuting sometime in 2014! (date TBA) And of course moi is the inspiration for NICK...the star (don't let anyone tell you otherwise). Watch for our debut volume, entitled MEOW IF IT'S MURDER! coming to bookstores, Nooks and Kindles everywhere courtesy of Penguin/Berkeley Prime Crime!

I am also the official spokescat for Nathan Fillion (TV Castle) charity, KIDS NEED TO READ! The HUMAN and I spearhead a fundraiser every summer! to learn more about this worthwhile charity, please visit KIDS NEED TO READ

And this is my brother, MAXX - I do so love to wrestle with him and bite his neck! Even though the Human always makes me stop! As you can see, he's a bit taller and slimmer than me.....

And these are our two sisters, or as the Human calls them "The old ladies! Play nice!"

Trixie - Age 16 (going on seventeen!) Eats like a horse, too.

And this is Gata - Age 11. I love to chase and torture her!

Gata and I came from the CLIFTON ANIMAL SHELTER - Trixie was a Hartz Mountain Rescue Cat, and Maxx is a stray my friend Barbara found in South Jersey!

Folks, adopt shelter cats! We make great pets! Honest!

Other cats my HUMAN has had over the years:
Misty and Phyllis - both shelter cats!

Misty is the dilute calico- also a Clifton Shelter cat- Phyllis is a tortoisehell calico. Misty passed away at the age of 10 in October, 2007. Phyllis passed away at the age of 11 in May, 2008. They will NEVER be forgotten! Trixie, Phyllis and Misty were the original trio of cats my HUMAN had!

8 comments:

Oh, you're from NJ, me too!!! They are all so damn cute. I have a calico/tabby, she's featured on my WeirdCat Wednesday post in a not very flattering photo :) I loveyour fur babies, those here and on the rainbow bridge.

Rocco, How interesting that you are a handsome tuxedo cat...I have a handsome tuxedo cat who visits me regularly keeping my garden secure from marauding field mice. Left by his mother beside the front steps of Covasna County Red Cross in St. George, Transylvania, Romania, the Ex. Director rescued him, brought him home and saved his life.

Named Cecile (a Frenchman's name), he patrols our little neighborhood day and night. Sometimes, he sits outside on the steps near my bedroom window softly calling my name until I open the window to have a chat. Cecile is quite a charming fellow, intelligent, and kind.

When I was younger, I enjoyed the Nick and Nora mysteries. Now, when back in the States for a visit, I'll check out your writings. Looking forward to reading your interview of Stephanie Jaye Evans! ~~ Anne Boyd, LCSW, Trauma Specialist, Red Cross Volunteer, Transylvania, Romania

Rocco - You are a very handsome tuxedo cat, and look much like THUMPER, the tuxedo cat in my new cat mystery novel, BLACK CATS LEGACY. Thumper helps solve crimes too. We would love to be interviewed and have our book reviewed on your site. You can see us at Amazon at http://tinyurl.com/lrvevgrm. Thumper is the muse of my real-live tuxedo cat, Boots. We also live with a cream tabby, a tortoiseshell, a grey and white cat and have three ferals at the door night and morning. Talk about house-cats and writers! We are two of a kind. Best wishes. Elaine Faber@mindcandymysteries.com

My cat Fala is envious of you. Like you, she attempts to be a contributing author. She has been interviewed and even has a YouTube video, but she is not allowed to blog or interview humans. She would like to know if you ever get together with other cats to meow about living with a mystery writer.

Hello Nancy, meow! Fala sounds like a cool cat! I do try to get together with other cats and have even interviewed a few - Princess Fuzzypants from Facebook will be on the blog next week. Purrhaps Fala would like to do a similar interview?

Hi, Rocco and siblings reminds me of an old Italian movie, Rocco e i suoi fratelli. I volunteer at a no kill pet shelter Home Fur Good here in Phoenix Arizona and I used that as a background for my newest release, a Cat to Die For. The cat in question is a shelter cat named Houdini because, well, he's an escape artist. He is also a look alike for another make calico...would you be interested on having Houdini do a brief interview? And perhaps a give away? The book is dedicated to Lynda Logan of the Home Fur good and to Samantha of the Acro cats. Meow for now...